. It develops perseverance attitude since you will have to persevere to be able to complete jigsaw puzzle.

. It enhances social skills. Who would not enjoy putting jigsaw pieces together with friends and family by the way?

Crosswords not only lighten your mood, but they also benefit the mind, by keeping the wits sharp, according to puzzle solvers and medical experts.

It's easy to get hooked on crosswords, and most newspapers editors use it as an addictive tool to their publication.

www.edubloxsa.co.za

Dear Parent,

Here are the Benefits of Puzzle for the Brain

Through a 21-year study published in June by doctors at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, senior citizens who worked crossword puzzles four days a week faced a 47 percent lower risk of dementia than those who did them once a week.

Dr. Robert Friedland, a professor of neurology at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, has studied the effects of intellectual stimulation in preventing Alzheimer's disease and other age-related neurological disorders. People who are more intellectually active from age 20 to 60 are less likely to get Alzheimer's.

The idea applies to educational activities (such as taking a class or learning a new skill) as well as recreational activities (solving a puzzle).

Crossword puzzles are effective in classrooms because they step outside the usual structure of schoolwork. It's a fun way to get at the same kind of learning.

*this article may be better understood by older juniors, younger ones only need to know the basics